It is often required to remove skin lesions from a patient. These may either be disposed of or sent for a biopsy. One method commonly used to remove skin lesions is referred to as a shave biopsy. To conduct a shave biopsy a practitioner will frequently use an elongate blade which is flexible in its length which is bowed by the user by pinching it gently between thumb and forefinger. Double-edged razor blades which have been split lengthwise in half have been widely used for this purpose. However, the potential of breaking the blade when splitting it, and the potential of the user being inadvertently cut while using the blade have led to devices being produced which essentially provide either grips or holders for razor blades or which make use of purpose-built blades. Such devices still require the user to pinch the grip or holder to cause the blade to bend.
A feature shared by all shave biopsy devices which make use of a blade which is bent by the user is that the user must exert a bending pressure on the blade while simultaneously exerting a cutting action on the patient's skin. The cutting action may include sliding the blade forward and a side to side sawing motion. This procedure can be awkward when the lesion is in a difficult to reach position on the patient. Furthermore, as the pressure exerted by the user can vary during the procedure, the arc of curvature of the blade can also vary during the procedure. There is also the risk that the blade becomes inverted and instead of bowing outwardly away from the user's hand, it bows inwardly towards the user's hand. This is undesirable if it occurs during the procedure and can also pose a risk to the user.
Also, there is a risk of the user being accidentally cut by the blade before and after using it as the edge generally remains exposed.
The preceding discussion of the background to the invention is intended only to facilitate an understanding of the present invention. It should be appreciated that the discussion is not an acknowledgment or admission that any of the material referred to was part of the common general knowledge in the art as at the priority date of the application.